How do oysters reproduce? Answers to this and other salty questions of the sea.
Last week in San Francisco seafood lovers from around the city gathered at Fine & Rare for the very first night of Seafood Stories, a dinner series focused on sharing local, sustainable seafood and learning how to be better stewards to our oceans. The dinners, co-hosted by Fish Revolution and Fine & Rare, are planned monthly in San Francisco* and feature local seafood, guest speakers, and mouth-watering menus.
What better way than to enjoy Storied Fish than alongside the experts who catch, prepare, and study them. Over the course of the evening, Fine & Rare’s culinary team served up five courses of delicious seafood, from fresh uni and salty oysters to wild Alaskan Salmon and caviar. Diners sat back and learned about the origins of each dish, from where and when it was caught, to the diverse reproductive habits that make species survival possible, to the threat that overfishing and climate change pose to marine environments.
The guest speaker for the evening was Future of Fish’s very own Research Co-Director Marah Hardt who shared excerpts from her newly released book, Sex in the Sea. Throughout the evening Marah told stories of sea creature reproduction—from tales of sex-changing oysters to salmon who return to their home stream to find a mate. Read more stories of salty seduction and order your own copy here.
Enjoy our highlights from the night and we hope to see you at a Seafood Stories dinner soon!
A line chef prepares the first course, small plates of uni, harvested by a local urchin diver.
Marah reads from her new book, Sex in the Sea.
Tomales Bay Marin Miyagi Oysters on the halfshell are a perfect conversation starter. Did you know that oysters change sexes, converting from male to female when they reach a certain size?
A dinner guest admires wild Alaskan King Salmon caught by Todd Korth. Todd attended dinner and shared stories about fishing and the power of freezing technology to deliver high quality seafood. It turns out frozen IS the new fresh. Todd also sells salmon straight off his boat in Half Moon Bay, California. To purchase Todd’s fish send him an email at toddkorth@yahoo.com or call 408-963-9711.
Calamari escabeche was a highlight of the evening, complete with crispy brussel leaves and a sprinkling of seaweed powder. Eating lower on the food chain is not only delicious—it’s also more sustainable. Seaweed acts as a natural storm buffer and marine habitat. And like oysters, seaweed filters the water around it, leaving the coastal waters cleaner than how it found them.
After a night of tastes from the sea, guests enjoyed a dessert of panna cotta, burnt genoise, candied kumquats, sparkling spumante foam, sea salt, and micro tarragon. A perfect sweet treat to cap off the evening!
Sound like your kind of dinner party? The next Seafood Stories SF dinner will be held on March 10. Come learn about the power of Storied Fish for conserving ocean resources and enjoy delicious food from 25 Lusk’s Chef Matthew Dolan. Get your tickets here for the SF dinner here: www.seaworthyfish.com
All proceeds from the dinners will benefit Fish Revolution, a non-profit that educates consumers on sustainable seafood and assists chefs, restaurants, and seafood industry members with implementing sustainable seafood business policy.
*Tickets are currently on sale for the Hawaii dinner series in late February: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/seafood-stories-hawaii-tickets-21318402917 and look out for information about a dinner in Seattle soon!
Published Feb 19, 2016
